Friends
by MydnytAngel
Summary: What if... Elena is at the boarding house when Katherine tells Damon that she never loved him? One shot.


Elena's heart felt like it was going to explode out of her chest. She needed to check on Damon; make sure they were okay. She had seen the hurt that had flashed across his face at the funeral and ever since then she had wanted nothing more than to talk to him and work it out. No one else would understand her need to be close to him, to keep in her life. She didn't know what possessed her to go around to the kitchen door, but she froze one she was inside. She heard a female voice, one almost identical to hers, and Damon's voice. And then, she could hear kissing and banging. She felt sick to her stomach but she couldn't bring her feet to move.

Katherine didn't deserve him and it made her angry knowing that just last night he had wanted to be kissing her and now he was with Katherine. What kind of game was Katherine playing? The kissing stopped and she heard them talking once again. She inched towards the doorway, her blood freezing at Katherine's next works. "I've never really loved you," she said coldly. "It was always Stefan."

The pain that rippled through Elena nearly made her collapse to her knees. She knew she should be concerned about Stefan, but the only thing on her mind was getting to Damon. He needed her, especially right now and she had to be there for him. She moved through the doorway, making her presence known, knowing this could blow up her face. "Get away from him," she growled, surprising both vampires.

Damon's eyes snapped to hers and he was by her side in a blur. Always the protector, never the protected. "What are you doing here?" he mumbled. "You need to leave. Right now."

"I'm not leaving you with her," Elena said, shaking her head. She knew how dangerous it was for her to be here. How easily Katherine could snap her neck, but Elena knew the vampiress wouldn't. Katherine still had plans for her. Elena's eyes were cold as ice as they landed on Katherine who was buttoning her shirt. "Get out."

"You interrupted my fun," Katherine said, folding her arms.

Elena swallowed pat the lump in her throat. "If you're here for Stefan, he's not home," she said stiffly. He was going to be coming over shortly, and he was going to worry if she wasn't there, but she didn't care. She wasn't going to let Katherine destroy everything Damon had built the last few months. She needed Damon on her side, not slipping back into killing people.

"I know that," Katherine said, lifting her chin. "I was here to have some fun with Damon. I knew he'd be too easy to play. Couldn't believe I pulled it off twice in a row."

Elena took a threatening step towards Katherine. "You keep your hands off him," she said. She had surprised herself with how much possessiveness she expressed. Damon was so special to her and she couldn't let just anyone break his heart, especially not Katherine.

"I'll be seeing you Elena," Katherine said with a toss of her hair. "Damon, we'll be doing this again soon." And she was gone with a quick open and close of the door.

Damon grabbed Elena's arm. "What kind of death wish do you have?" he growled. "She could have killed you without thinking twice. What are you doing here?"

"I wanted to talk to you," she said softly, resting a hand on his arm. "About earlier." She had come for him, trying to make sure they were okay. Couldn't he see how much she cared about him? Their friendship wasn't some small thing to her, and she had to do whatever she could to get it back on track.

Damon moved away from her and headed to the bar. "I got the message Elena," he said. "You love Stefan. Dually noted. I made a post it for myself so that I don't forget."

He was trying to push her away. He didn't want her to see him have a breakdown. But she wasn't just going to walk away. "Damon," she said softly. "I'm not here about that. I heard what she said. Are you okay?" She didn't know what kind of answer she wanted him to give her. If he was okay she'd wonder if he had feelings at all and if he wasn't, she didn't know how to comfort him.

"I'm wonderful," he said, collapsing in the couch, taking a large swallow of scotch.

Elena bit her lip before sitting next to him and carefully removing the drink from his fingers. "This isn't the answer Damon," she said. "I know you're hurting and I'm here for you." And she would prefer him sober for it. A drunk and upset combination wouldn't have gone over well with Damon.

"You think your face is what I need right now?" he growled, his eyes flashing at her.

Elena flinched at the comparison to Katherine and got to her feet. "Forget I care," she said, turning to leave. It hurt that she reminded him of Katherine, the woman who had broken his heart. Maybe he did just need some space.

"No Elena," he said, quietly as he grabbed her arm gently. "I'm sorry. I didn't mean that."

Elena squeezed his hand lightly as she returned to the space next to him. "You deserve so much better than her," she said softly. "Don't let her ruin you Damon. I won't let her."

"So what are you doing here?" he asked, leaning his head back against the couch. Clearly that meant discussion over and she let it slide for the moment.

"I was worried about you," Elena admitted. "Some big stuff has happened the last few days and you and I haven't really talked about it. And think it's getting out of control." She imagined that the moment he shared with Katherine, when he thought it was her, was a private matter for him. Not something he wanted to talk about especially with Stefan around.

"You mean the kiss?" Damon muttered. "Wasn't you. Nothing to talk about."

"Damon, remember what I said," she whispered. "We're closer than this. Katherine is just messing with your head. You can't let her do this to you. That's not who you are anymore Damon."

Damon lifted his head and stared at her for a long moment before covering her hand with his. "Thank you Elena," he said softly. "You're the first one to believe in me. That's why I try to do the right thing, to make you happy, to keep you safe. You keep me going and…" he seemed to struggle with his next few words. "I'm glad that you're my friend."

A smile bloomed on her face. "You're my friend too Damon," she said. "And we're gunna deal with this."


End file.
